"Khan," Warriyo breathed out as he sat in the backseat beside Khan.

He checked Khan’s vitals, barely feeling a pulse.

Behind the wheel was Nelek, driving as fast as he could. On their way to the getaway car, they ran into a few goons from the Knights Gang. Fortunately, dealing with brutes like them was easy, and they’d gotten away clean.

Even so, time was crucial.

With Khan losing too much blood and the looming prospect of negotiating with Dominion, they couldn’t afford to relax. Not yet. Not to mention, Rus had gone back to assist Ashley.

"War," Nelek steadied his breathing, eyes fixed on the road. "Let’s get Khan to a hospital first."

Warriyo glanced at the back of the driver’s seat.

"What about that woman and Rus? And Dominion?" Warriyo voiced his concern. "Those Knights goons are pathetic, but something doesn’t sit right with me, Nelek."

He paused, turning it over in his mind. "The boss isn’t someone who operates without a backup plan."

Their boss — the founder of their small group — had taught them nearly everything they knew. Though they had honed their skills through experience, they never made the mistake of underestimating him.

In other words, they both knew deep down that aside from the Knights, the likelihood that their boss had deployed more capable people was high.

"I’ll drop you both off at the hospital," Nelek decided. "Then I’ll head to Dominion. Let’s just hope what I wrote on this car is enough to stop them from shooting me on sight."

"Nel —"

"We don’t have time to argue," Nelek cut him off. "Even if Dominion kills me, so be it. Just make sure Khan is safe."

Warriyo ground his teeth and looked away bitterly. When he did, his eyes fell on the now unconscious Khan.

"Fuck!" he hissed through his teeth. "God damn it! We should’ve listened to you — we should’ve just refused this mission!"

There was no point in regret now, but they couldn’t help it. They both knew that not all of them were going to make it through tonight.

Nelek went quiet, eyes on the road, letting Warriyo vent. But just as he was about to sink into his own unspoken thoughts, the wail of a siren rose from behind them.

"Huh?" Warriyo looked back and immediately shouted, "Duck!"

He pulled Khan down and held him close as bullets tore through the rear windshield. Nelek squinted, stomped on the gas, and lowered his head, shielded by the seat back.

The front windshield spiderwebbed as rounds punched through it; the rearview mirror exploded into fragments; the seats sprouted holes from the barrage.

Their car swerved across the wide, empty road as they fought to stay ahead of the attack.

"Shit —" Warriyo hissed, looking down at Khan to check if he’d been hit.

Khan had no new injuries since Warriyo had shielded him from the shards. "Nelek!"

"I’m fine!" Nelek shouted back, already slouched low in his seat, barely able to see through the shattered windshield. "Shit, I can’t see a thing."

Pulling his gun, he fired at the windshield without hesitation to clear it completely.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Three shots, then he punched through the remaining glass with his left fist — all while keeping the car on the road. As the windshield gave way entirely, his eyes went wide: they were hurtling straight toward a sharp turn.

"Shit —!" He seized the wheel, stamped the brakes, and yanked hard. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

The car drifted, tires screaming, smoke billowing, the stench of burnt rubber flooding the car.

SLAM!

They made the turn — barely — the rear of the car clipping the corner post on the way through. But they didn’t stop. They accelerated, and another round of fire came thundering after them.

Warriyo, meanwhile, gasped as he fought to steady himself. When they’d turned, he’d thrown his arms wide to avoid crushing Khan, knowing any added pressure could worsen his injury. The moment they leveled out, he peered through the shattered rear windshield at the vehicles giving chase.

"That’s the police?" he blurted, watching squad cars wrench through the sharp turn behind them. "Fuck!"

Panic gripped him. Their boss had probably tipped off the police to run them down as well. But just as the thought took hold, he saw someone crawl out of a rear window — someone not in uniform.

"Nelek!" Warriyo screamed, watching the weapon level toward them. "They’re going to fucking bomb us!"

Nelek’s breath caught as his knuckles whitened on the wheel. His rearview and side mirrors were gone. Looking back wasn’t an option.

"Fuck..." he whispered.

The color drained from Warriyo’s face. He looked from the driver’s seat to the vehicles closing in behind them. The moment his eyes landed on the car at their tail, his heart lurched into his throat.

They weren’t going to make it.

Both of them knew it. Not to the hospital. Not to Dominion. They weren’t going to make it.

This was the end.

And yet, somehow, the only thought that surfaced in that moment was Ashley. And Rus.

Warriyo stared at the car behind them as the world seemed to slow. He held his breath, watching the man squeeze the trigger.

But instead of their car erupting in flames, it was the vehicle behind them that exploded in a roar of fire and metal.

BOOM!

Warriyo gasped as the man who’d been about to shoot them tumbled off the vehicle. The other cars in pursuit scattered; the one nearest to them fishtailed and detonated. All around them, the chase dissolved into chaos.

"What?" he breathed, turning his head, and caught a line of cars blasting past them from either side, coming from the opposite direction. His pulse hammered as he whipped back to face the front, where more vehicles were bearing down on them from a distance.

Nelek eased off the gas, eyes wide, as the flood of oncoming headlights filled his shattered windshield. Then came the sound: a heavy, rhythmic roar overhead.

He hit the brakes and looked up.

Choppers. Multiple of them, sweeping in low, one training a blinding light directly on their vehicle while the others peeled off toward the cargo terminal where Ashley and Rus had been left behind.

Now they both knew exactly who these people were.

Nelek’s lips parted.

"Dominion," he panted. "They’re... they’re here."